Germany decides 90 years is probably long enough to wait before giving the far-right another go
by Andy Matthews 1 month ago 
German voters have decided that roughly 90 years is probably a sufficiently long cooling-off period before allowing the far right another opportunity to demonstrate what it can do for the nation.
The Alternative für Deutschland won a landslide victory in Sunday’s Saxony-Anhalt election, taking almost 44% of the vote and leaving millions of Europeans wondering whether the phrase “historic victory for the German far right” couldn’t perhaps have remained safely confined to history books.
AfD supporter Simon Müller said, “Obviously, people hear ‘far-right German nationalist party promising mass deportations’ and immediately make comparisons with the past, which is incredibly unfair.
“For one thing, the coverage of this is happening in colour.”
The AfD fell just three seats short of an outright majority, despite its Saxony-Anhalt branch being officially classified as right-wing extremist by German intelligence, an obstacle that voters apparently regarded as more of a mediocre TripAdvisor review than an existential warning.
Party officials have promised a “deportation offensive”, changes to schools and an end to programmes designed to combat right-wing extremism, while insisting there is absolutely no reason anyone should find that particular combination of policies remotely unsettling.
Müller continued, “People need to stop obsessing about things that happened nearly a century ago.
“In fact, one of the things the AfD wants is for schools to specifically spend less time obsessing about that thing that happened nearly a century ago, so hopefully that problem will eventually solve itself.”
European leaders have expressed alarm at the result, although AfD supporters insist comparisons with Germany’s past are hysterical and offensive.
“History doesn’t just repeat itself,” Müller explained.
“There are always important differences.
“For example, last time the far right became a major political force in Germany, Elon Musk wasn’t on social media congratulating them.”
Political analysts have nevertheless urged people not to panic, pointing out that Germany has spent decades building powerful democratic safeguards specifically designed to prevent the far right taking power again.
They added, “So I suppose we’re about to find out how good they are.”
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